COCKY Jason Cummings reckons Hibs are still favourites to win the promotion play-offs despite seeing Falkirk pip them to second place in the Championship .

The Easter Road side will have to make it back to the top flight the hard way with an extra two games against Raith Rovers after yesterday’s results edged them into third place on goal difference.

Cummings’s strike sealed a 2-0 win over Queen of the South but Hibs fell two goals short of catching Falkirk , whose 1-0 win over Morton was enough to confirm them as runners-up behind champions Rangers.

But despite Hibees now facing a tough two-legged tie against fourth-placed Raith, starting on Wednesday at Stark’s Park, Cummings insists his side are still the team everyone else will fear.

He said: “I think we’re the team best equipped to go up, definitely. I don’t know what it says in the bookies’ odds but I reckon we are the favourites.

“If anything, the other teams will be scared to meet us. I wouldn’t think any of the teams would want to come and play us.

Paul Watson celebrates his goal with teammates (Image: SNS Group)

“So that puts us in a good mindset as favourites.

“We were just unlucky not to finish second, we shot ourselves in the foot a couple of times. But I think we’ve got the players here to go on and get promoted.”

Bairns boss Peter Houston insists finishing in second place in the Championship is a better achievement than reaching the 2015 Scottish Cup Final.

He said: “The pressure was on us to win a match against a good side. The pressure now, for us, can wait for 10 days before we go into a double-header and the good thing is we’ll have the second leg at home.

“The difference between second and third is massive for us, it gives us 10 days to recover and that’s great because we looked out on our feet at the end.

“We can have a look at who comes through and think about how we are going to go about it.

“We’ve done nothing yet but for a club this size to finish second above Hibernian is a tremendous accomplishment. It’s the first time we have done that in 45 years.

“It’s a better achievement than reaching the Cup Final last year because we had a favourable run to get there and we have done this over 36 games.

Hibs manager Alan Stubbs (Image: SNS Group)

“We have lost only four games which is fewer than any other team in the league.” Unlike Falkirk, Hibs will have to handle a hectic schedule that sees them play seven games in 21 days, including the Scottish Cup Final against Rangers.

But Cummings isn’t fazed by the crammed fixture list and added: “Sometimes it works in your favour if you’ve finished third because you’re still active, still playing.

“So you’ve not really got time to think and worry about it. You get chucked back in and concentrate on who you’re playing. So, if anything, that shouldn’t worry the boys. It could turn out a good thing for us.”

Having featured in the play-off against Hamilton that got Hibs relegated two years ago and the defeat by Rangers last season, Cummings is hoping to use all that pain to make it third time lucky.

He added: “The fact a couple of boys have been in this situation before and felt the pain of losing will stand us in good stead because it does hurt you, believe me. When that’s your season over, it’s quite a harsh way to end it.

“So it puts our boys in a good mindset, knowing we never want to go through that again.”

Meanwhile, Morton boss Jim Duffy paid tribute to Houston’s side.

He said: “Congratulations to Falkirk for finishing second – it’s an outstanding achievement.”